Thompson was, according to the report, “one of the university’s most admired and beloved faculty members” who battled illness and sometimes taught classes from his hospital bed by telephone.

Funeral services are pending.

Paul Goddard, who informed BNc of the news, wrote an online comment: “I have lost my dear friend Big John Henry Thompson. I will always remember Big John saying this about death, ‘She’s not dead, she’s only sleeping.'”

Randal and his wife Vicki have lived and worked in Brazil since Nov. 1984. They have three children, two daughters-in-law, and five grandchildren. He likes to read novels in his back-porch hammock. http://randal.us